You Call The Shots, Babe
by prettypinklips
Summary: In a harsh whisper, she growls, "Klaus is going to kill all of you." -– Klaus/Caroline, AU/AH. Complete


**You Call The Shots, Babe**

(I Just Wanna Be Yours)

.

Caroline breathes out a sigh of relief, and steps out into the alley. She pulls her pack of cigarettes out of her apron.

She's not a habitual smoker, more of a once or twice a week kinda smoker. She'd been planning on quitting for months, she just hadn't gotten around to it. She was totally stressed out, okay? Vicki had called in on one of the busiest nights of the week, and Matt wasn't able to cover her shift in time. So it had been just Caroline on the floor for seven hours while Donovan's bar was packed. She was exhausted.

Caroline leans her head back against the alley wall, sticks the cigarette between her lips. She pats the pockets of her apron for her lighter. "Damn it," she growls when she can't find it. She leaves the alley, hoping a guest from the bar had walked out front to smoke. She'd borrow a lighter there.

She stops short when she comes around the corner. The sleek all black Monte Carlo is in its usual place, parked alongside the curb. She had hoped he wouldn't show tonight. But he always did.

Klaus Mikaelson was an international smuggler. Drugs, guns, everything. He owned every part of lower Manhattan. He had eyes everywhere. Donovan's was his favorite place, and she was his favorite girl. They had met six months earlier when she had given him a cigarette.

.

She's standing outside of Donovan's, smoking. It's quiet out, a beautiful night in New York. She takes a moment to appreciate the New York skyline. While she's captivated by the breathtaking view, a throat is cleared beside her.

"Can I buy one of those off of you?" A man asks, and she turns. He's beautiful, immaculate all black suit tailored to fit his body down to the last hard line, curly blonde hair gelled to perfection, neat stubble on his cheeks, ocean blue eyes. Wordlessly, almost tongue tied, she hands him a cigarette.

"Thanks." He says. She hadn't noticed it before, but his voice was thick with an accent. British, maybe. She was a sucker for accents.

"You're welcome." She says. She continues to smoke her cigarette, watching him from the corner of her eye. He lights his own cigarette. She finishes hers and drops it on the ground, crushing the butt under her boot. She straightens her apron out and fluffs her hair, ready to go back to work. She moves to go inside, but he catches her hand.

What feels like a jolt of electricity moves through her, down to her toes, as his fingers ghost over here skin.

Caroline blinks at him, and he holds up the hand not holding hers, pulls out his wallet. "I did say I would buy one." He says, and he hands her a bill before he drops his cigarette. "It was nice to meet you, Caroline." He murmurs, glancing at her nametag. He doesn't give her a moment to say anything before he's ducking into an all black Monte Carlo.

Stunned, she looks down at the one hundred dollar bill in her hand, mouth dropping open.

.

Since that day, Klaus had been a permanent fixture in her life. One she wasn't sure she wanted. Actually, she was almost positive she didn't want him. But he wanted her; a fact he liked to make painfully clear.

Klaus' bodyguard and righthand man, Stefan, gets out of the drivers seat. He gives her a nod. Klaus steps out of the car before she has time to make a run for it, and as always, he finds her face in the crowd. He smiles, she glares. "Caroline, how lovely to see you." He greets, straightening his suit jacket.

"Klaus." She says stiffly. "I wish I could say the same."

He smiles wickedly, handsomely, "One day." He tells her, and it sounds like a promise. She crosses her arms over her chest in some sort of defiance. She's sick of this cat and mouse game he likes to play. She's made it painfully clear that she's not interested, but he didn't like to be told no.

"Maybe." She allows, and he smiles again, boyish this time. "But probably not." She smirks when his smile vanishes.

"I am growing quite tired of your defiance, love." He admonishes, "Lucky for you, I'm here on business tonight." He says, turning to scan the street. As if on cue, a sleek black SUV comes around the corner, parking just in front of Klaus' car. A seedy looking business man, just Klaus' type, steps out of the car. Truly, she's relieved. When Klaus brings "business" to Donovan's, he always left her out of it. Something about his enemies not needing to know his weaknesses. He would ignore her all night, not so much as glancing in her direction once.

"Have a nice evening, Caroline." Klaus murmurs to her before he's turning towards the man driving the SUV. He shakes his hand, and starts up a conversation, effectively cutting Caroline out. Klaus takes the man into Donovan's, leaving Caroline outside.

Stefan, who had been silent and stoic–as always–for Caroline and Klaus' conversation finally speaks, "Need a light?" He asks, nodding to the still unlit cigarette in her hand.

"God, yes please."

.

It's two days later and there is a guy flirting with her. He's sitting at the counter, cheeky grin in place, drink in his hand. He keeps asking her questions; how old she is, her last name, her favorite food. She dries a glass, answers him cordially. She's not interested, but she hopes he's interested enough to leave a big tip.

He's got dark hair and a long straight nose and dark brown eyes. He's a pretty picture, with broad shoulders and tan skin. His name is Tyler. She almost wants to give him what he wants. It would be easier. Much easier than the game she's playing with Klaus.

She flirts back, batting her lashes and giggling. He's eating out of the palm of her hand when Donovan's doors open, Klaus and his henchmen striding in. She gulps, immediately stepping away from Tyler and putting her head down, feigns innocence. Klaus gives her a simpering smile as he sits at his usual table. She grabs a beer for Stefan, and grabs a bottle of aged bourbon and a glass for Klaus. Her heels click on the hardwood floor as she moves towards their table.

"Hello, love." Klaus greets as she sets the bottles down onto the table. "Who's your friend?" He asks, blue eyes locked on Tyler.

Caroline stiffens, "He's nobody." She says quickly. Maybe too quickly. Klaus' smile returns, but she knows that the conversation is far from over. She runs away from their table as quickly as she can.

As soon as she's behind the bar, Tyler gets her attention again. He's telling her a story about something she's not paying attention to. Her eyes and thoughts are on Klaus, and his eyes are on Tyler. She's afraid. Not for herself, but for Tyler. She doesn't really know what Klaus is capable of or what he will do to keep her, but she knows it's not good or respectable.

Tyler places a hand on hers as she drops another drink in front of him, and Klaus' chair clatters to the ground as he jolts up from his seat. Donovan's falls silent as Klaus stalks towards an oblivious Tyler. She yanks her hand out from under Tyler's, rushing around the bar.

"Klaus, wait." She pleads, trying to catch his arm, but he shrugs her off.

Tyler turns in his seat. He looks unimpressed as Klaus surveys him. "I don't like your hands on the staff, mate." Klaus says smoothly, business like.

"I didn't know you owned the place." Tyler says coolly, but even Caroline can see the way his hands shake as he holds his beer. As drunk as Tyler is, he knows Klaus is powerful and dangerous. It's in the way he carries himself.

"Touch Caroline again and I'll rip your throat out with my teeth and feed it to my dogs." Klaus says, stepping towards Tyler until they're half a foot apart.

Tyler rises from his seat, sets his beer down. She can see that he's planning on swinging at Klaus, but Klaus is too smart, too quick. He grabs Tyler's fist as it flies at his face and bends his arm behind his back. With his foot, he knocks Tyler's legs out from under him. As Tyler falls to his knees, Klaus grabs a fistful of his hair, lifting him back to his feet.

"Please, Klaus, he didn't know." Caroline whispers, casting her eyes around the bar. Guests are looking their way, whispering to each other. The look of fear is prominent. Most are familiar with Klaus' antics, and most know Klaus will do anything to keep what he thinks is his. Including her.

Klaus keeps ahold of Tyler's hair, smiling. "He does now." He growls, smashing Tyler's face down onto the counter. The skin on Tyler's forehead splits, and blood spatters the counter and Caroline's apron. She squeals, stumbling backwards. Tyler stumbles, holding both hands to his head. Blood drips steadily down the side of his face.

Klaus steps away from the counter and Tyler, looks towards the others in the restaurant. "Caroline is off limits." He spits, and Stefan rolls his eyes. "Now leave." And one by one, every person in the restaurant files out, head down. Stefan is the last to go, waving to Caroline as he exits.

Tyler scrambles to his feet when Klaus kicks at him, following the others out the door. Caroline glares at the blonde haired man, "Did you really have to do that?" She snaps. "You could have killed him."

Klaus doesn't look phased. "To be fair, he swung at me first. But you know I don't like it when other people play with my things, Caroline." He says, sitting in the same spot Tyler had been in moments before.

"I don't belong to you, Klaus. You don't get to smash someone's face in just because they're flirting with me, you psycho. The world doesn't work like that." She snaps, grabbing a rag and a bucket of water. She starts scrubbing Tyler's blood off of the counter.

Klaus grins, "That's the beauty of being me. In my world, and in yours, I can do whatever the bloody hell I want."

Caroline stops short. She almost wants to yell and scream at him, but he'd probably just enjoy it. She drops the rag into the bucket, braces her hands flat on the bar. "If you really wanted to be with me, Klaus, if you really wanted me to love you, you would change. You've been chasing me for a year and I haven't given in yet. You say I'm stubborn and I'm teasing you, but maybe it's you that's the problem. Maybe I can't be with you because of who you are and how you are. Maybe I'm scared to be with you because you do things like this!" She throws her hands out, gesturing to the blood and the empty restaurant.

Klaus doesn't take his eyes off of her. His smirk is pronounced, and she finds it even more annoying than usual. "You're beautiful even when you're angry, Caroline." He compliments her.

"Don't change the subject!" She snaps, and throws the rag at him. "Help me clean up this blood or so help me it will be yours all over the floor next time."

He rises from his seat, and gets down on his hands and knees beside her. She's sure she's the only one who can order him around like that, and it sends a thrill through her. Their knuckles brush as they scrub the floor and he grins when she yanks her hand away.

There was a spark when they touched, there always was.

.

Caroline is counting the money from the register when there's a light knock on the door. She'd sent an exhausted Matt home an hour ago and Donovan's had been closed for two. It was now three in the morning. Silence follows the lone knock, and she decides it was her imagination and lack of sleep. She goes back to counting the money. It's not another minute more before there's another knock.

Caroline sets the money down, and goes into the back for a knife before she moves to the door. She peaks out of the small twin glass panels, and sees nothing. It's too dark. But there was definitely someone knocking. She braces one hand around the hilt of the knife while she unlocks the door and pushes it open with the other hand.

She squeals when something thuds to the floor beside her feet. A man had been leaning against the door outside. He's wet head to toe from the rain, and she smells blood. When she kneels down, she recognizes Klaus. He's shivering, holding a hand tightly to a bloody wound on his stomach.

"Klaus? Klaus, are you okay?" She asks, hands fluttering over him. She's not sure what to do. There's so much blood.

"Need to get inside." He gasps lightly, "Before they come back."

"They? Who's 'they'?"

_"Now,_ Caroline!" He barks, and she doesn't need to be told twice. She grabs his arm and slings it over her shoulder, pulling with all of her strength. She gets him inside and locks the door quickly. She helps him stand on his feet, and she guides him to the bar. He slips down onto a barstool, breathing heavily.

"I need you to take the bullet out." He says, voice husky. He's gasping for air.

Caroline's eyes widen, "_B__ullet?! _You've been_shot?_ Oh my god," She digs into her apron for her phone, "I'm gonna call an ambulance."

"No!" He cries, grabbing her hands, "What am I going to tell them, love? That I got shot during an arms deal gone bad? No, I need your help. Right here and right now. I'm going to die if you don't help me." He holds her hands tightly, his eyes searching hers.

She doesn't want him to die, no matter what she acted like. She doesn't want him to get arrested either. "Okay." She agrees. "I won't call an ambulance. But...I don't know how to take a bullet out. I can't do it. I can call Stefan?"

Klaus shakes his head, "Stefan will get here too late." He winces in pain as he talks, "I'm going to bleed out before he even gets in his car. I need you to take out the bullet and stitch me up before I lose too much blood."

Numbly, she says, "I can't do it."

He pulls a bloody hand away from his stomach, and cups her face with both of his hands, leaving blood on her cheek. "You can. You are smart and strong and so full of kindness that my heart hurts thinking of you. You can do this. Please. I will be forever in your debt, Caroline."

She's breathless from his words. She nods slowly, "Okay. I'll do it. What do I need?"

He rattles off a list of random items, and she runs around Donovan's, grabbing everything. Thank god she'd bought a portable sewing kit and had left it at Donovan's when she'd ripped her shirt. She comes back to Klaus, dumping the items she'd gathered onto the bar. Klaus is sitting on the ground, and she kneels beside him. "What now?" She asks.

"Help me take off my shirt." She helps him peel his shirt from his skin and over his head, gasping and slapping a hand over her mouth when she sees the gunshot wound. She totally cannot do this. She doesn't even freak out over the sight of his perfect body. There's too much blood and he's bruised everywhere. He'd been badly beaten before he was shot. She presses a hand to her mouth.

"Don't be afraid." Klaus gasps out. "I trust you." He lays down, and makes a gesture for her to get a move on.

Caroline gathers herself and opens a bottle of alcohol, dumping it on his stomach. He cries out before he stuffs his shirt into his mouth. "I'm sorry." Caroline whispers, tears welling in her eyes.

Keep going, his eyes say.

She grabs the tweezers she'd found in her makeup bag and the lantern she'd gotten from the storage closet. She turns on the lantern and douses the tweezers in alcohol before taking her lighter to the metal prongs. "Okay, let's do this." She mutters, more to herself than to Klaus because he looks like he's about to pass out.

Sucking in a deep breath, she plunges the tweezers into Klaus' wound. She digs around as he gasps, body wriggling in pain. "I'm sorry!" She cries again, but she doesn't stop. Soon, the tip of her tweezers make contact with something not squishy. "I think I found the bullet." She says, and with one swift yank, the bullet is out. Immediately, Klaus' wound starts gushing.

Caroline rips the shirt from his mouth and presses it to his stomach, applying as much pressure as she can muster. "It's okay." She whispers soothingly, "Everything is going to be okay."

Soon, the blood flow slows enough for her to stitch the wound. This time she's confident. She stitches the bullet hole up without incident.

"Thank you, my love." Klaus manages to get out, gasping for breath. His forehead is covered in sweat and his mouth is twisted into a grimace, but his eyes are on her. Always on her. Her skin rises with goosebumps at his use of 'my love'. He's a charmer, definitely.

She lays down on the ground beside him. "You're welcome."

"Where'd you learn how to suture?" He asks curiously. He runs a finger over the stitches.

"I wanted to be a veterinarian. I volunteered at lots of animal shelters when I was in high school and sometimes they let me sit in on surgeries."

Klaus turns his head to look at her, "Why didn't you become a veterinarian?" He asks.

Caroline rubs a hand over her face tiredly. "I don't know. I guess reality came crashing down and I realized that you actually needed money, not just passion, to make your dreams come true. I couldn't afford college courses, so here I am." She waves around them at the bar.

"It's never too late to make your dreams come true, Caroline." Klaus says, voice soft. She looks at him. His gaze is tender as it rests on her.

A rush of something, she doesn't know what, comes over her, and she almost kisses him in that moment. She almost leans over and holds his face in her hands. But she doesn't. She clears her throat, and their moment, as sweet as it had been and as quickly as it had come, is done. She sits up, "I'm gonna call Stefan and have him come and get you, okay?"

He doesn't say anything, simply nods. He looks at her like he knows something has changed in her. It hasn't. She still hates him. Maybe not as much as before, but she definitely hates him. At least, that's what she tells herself.

Stefan comes around half an hour later and loads Klaus into his car. "Will he be okay?" Caroline asks Stefan. Klaus leans his head against the window, eyes fluttering closed.

"He's always okay." Stefan says. He puts a hand on her shoulder. "But I'll keep you posted."

She snaps back into reality. "No. I don't care. I don't care what happens to him at all. Don't bother." She says quickly. Stefan shrugs before ducking into his car. The engine starts and they're gone before she can even wave. Not that she would have anyway.

Later, after she's showered and in bed, and the sun is rising, her phone buzzes. It's a message from Stefan. 'He's asleep now. He keeps saying your name.'

Caroline bites her lip and drops her phone onto the floor. She sinks into her blankets, pressing her face into the pillow. She thinks of his earlier words. 'You are strong and smart and so full of kindness that my heart hurts thinking of you.'

Maybe her heart hurts too. Just a little.

.

The next day she jogs down the stairs to check her mail. She flips through the usual bills, but stop short when she reaches a light blue colored envelope with her name scrawled across the front. She opens the envelope and gasps. Inside is a check for fifty thousand dollars in her name. A note and a pamphlet for the best vet tech school in New York are paper clipped to the check.

The note reads 'It's never too late to make your dreams come true. Thank you. – Klaus'

She holds the check to her chest. The most evil and ruthless man she knew had just given her a check for fifty thousand dollars. He would raise hell if she tried to give it back. She tucks the check back into the envelope, but keeps the pamphlet in her hand.

Once inside her apartment, she grabs her phone and dials the number for the school. The phone is answered quickly, and nervous, she says, "Hi, I'd like to talk to someone about enrolling?"

.

The night is cold. Colder than usual, she thinks. She gathers her coat tighter to her body. She's almost home, but the chill continues to bite at her hands and nose. She decides to cut down an alley and save herself a few blocks.

Caroline takes a left turn, and breathes a sigh of relief once she's in the alley. The cold, biting air is gone for the moment. The alley is dark and scarily quiet. Her steps turn cautious. It's late, too late for her to be walking home on her own in New York. She should have taken Matt up on his offer for a ride. Just as she's cursing herself for being stupid, a metal trash can behind her topples over.

Her breath catches in her throat. Fighting her paralyzing fear, she turns and peers into the dark. She can't see a thing. Probably a stray cat, she tells herself. She keeps walking, brisk this time. With one hand she digs into her purse, searching for her pepper spray. Just in case. She holds it tightly in her hand, casting her eyes back and forth.

She's almost to the end of the alley and back on the well lit street, almost safe, when an arm snakes around her waist and yanks her backwards. She's thrown back against the alley wall, and her purse is torn from her hands. She can't see, but she sprays at her attacker with the pepper spray anyway. She's sure she gets him, because he staggers backwards, choking. She surges forward, grabbing her purse. She attempts to make a run for it but the man is back on his feet, and he seems angrier this time.

Caroline realizes she's not going to be able to help herself, and kicks out at the man as he advances on her while she builds up a loud scream. Just as she's about to cry out and his hand closes tightly around her arm, he drops to his knees, looking dazed.

The man drops to the ground, blood slowly pooling on the cold concrete. Stefan appears out of the darkness, and asks if she's alright. He's wiping blood from the crowbar in his hands onto his dark jeans.

"What the hell are you doing here, Stefan?!" She cries.

"Klaus has me follow you home every night. He knows you walk and wants to make sure you're safe. He'd buy you a car if you asked, you know."

She sputters, "Klaus has you follow me home every night?"

Stefan nods.

"Oh my god." She says to herself. This is getting out of hand. "Can you please take me home?" She asks, and Stefan puts a hand on her shoulder, leading her out of the alley.

The drive home is quiet until she's getting out. "He cares for you, you know." Stefan says quietly, in his brooding way. His green eyes lock with hers. "And he doesn't care about anything."

Caroline sucks in a ragged breath. She rubs her temples. "I know he does, Stefan. But I just... I just can't do it right now. And I don't know if I ever can. He is who he is."

A man that has someone follow her home from work just to make sure she's safe. She could have been mugged or worse if it weren't for Klaus or Stefan.

Stefan puts the car in drive, and she gets out, throwing her purse over her shoulder. "Maybe you don't really know who he is." Stefan says.

Caroline shuts the car door, and Stefan takes off. "Maybe I don't." She mutters to herself. She shakes her head, digs into her purse for her keys. She climbs the long four flights of stairs up to her apartment and collapses onto her bed when she's inside.

After an hour, her brain and body are no longer frazzled, and she sinks into her bubble bath. She relaxes in the water, eyes fluttering shut. Baths are probably her favorite thing ever.

Just as she's falling asleep, there's a sharp rap on her front door. It's close to midnight, and she doesn't have any friends, so she's pretty sure it could only be one person. She dries herself quickly, wraps the towel around herself.

Caroline yanks the front door open, revealing Klaus. He looks relieved to see her. "What are you doing here?" She asks.

He shoulders past her, giving her towel clad body a sultry look. "I came to see how my favorite bartender was doing. Heard you ran into a spot of trouble walking home tonight. You know how I hate you walking home, love. You could get hurt."

Caroline snorts. "Like you care what happens to me."

Klaus doesn't falter. He spears her with a sharp look. Not angry, but hurt. "I care about you more than anything." He says, and she knows he's being honest.

She looks away from him before she does something stupid like fall totally in love with him. "Look, I'm okay. Stefan was there." She crosses her arms over her chest. "How long has he been following me anyway?" She asks.

Klaus sits on her couch, spreads his arms out over the back. He looks so out of place on her old stained couch in his pristine suit. She's a little embarrassed at the state of her apartment. She's never had much money, and it had never really bothered her before, but Klaus was filthy rich, and here he was sitting on her ratty couch. But, her heart warms, he doesn't seem to think anything of it, his eyes are only for her. Always for her.

"Awhile. Three months maybe." Klaus shrugs. She rolls her eyes. She wants to freak out, but she doesn't. She sits next to him on the couch, grabs the remote.

They watch TV together for awhile, and she digests what had happened in the alley. Bad things happen to girls that walk home alone at night in New York. Tiredly, her head lolls on Klaus' shoulder. "Thank you." She mumbles.

"For what, love?"

She yawns, eyes fluttering shut. "For caring about me."

In the morning, she wakes up in her bed. Her towel is gone, replaced by the oversized T-shirt she likes to wear to bed. Klaus had changed her and tucked her in. She stretches, letting out a yawn. She reaches out to the nightstand to check her phone. She turns her head, catches sight of the bouquet on her nightstand.

Sunflowers (her favorite) sit in a vase on her nightstand, with a note attached to the stem of one. You're welcome, the note reads in Klaus' neat scrawl.

She flops back down into bed, pressing the note to her chest. Things are changing between them, she can feel it.

She's not sure she wants to fight him on the possibility of 'them' any longer.

.

It's her day off and Caroline is reveling in the bowl of cereal and Saturday morning cartoons she's enjoying.

All hell breaks loose as Bugs Bunny in drag plants one on Elmer Fudd. Her door flies off of the hinges and she screams. Three men in black swarm into her small apartment. One man turns off the TV and points a gun at her head. She instantly stop screaming. The other two men each grab ahold of her arms.

"She's beautiful." The man with the gun observes.

The man holding her left arm snickers, "No wonder Klaus is obsessed with her."

At Klaus' name she perks up, but only for the moment. The man with the gun comes behind her, striking her on the back of the head with it. She blacks out, the back of her head stinging with pain.

She wakes sometime later, tied to a chair. Her head lolls over the back of the chair, and she blinks rapidly, adjusting her eyes to the bright flourescent lights above her. She moves her head up, narrows her eyes at her surroundings.

She's in some kind of warehouse, large crates all around. The three men that had taken her from her apartment are there, standing watch over her.

In front of her sits another man, the one that had driven the SUV. Klaus had met him a few months before at Donovan's. He straightens his suit jacket out and greets her, "Hello, Caroline." She hadn't noticed before, but he's holding a camcorder. He's filming her.

"Hi." She mutters.

"Do you know why you're here?" He asks.

She shakes her head. "I didn't do anything." She mumbles, pulling at the ropes binding her hands behind the chair.

The man coos, "Of course not, sweets. You're just collateral damage. It's Klaus' fault you're here." He jerks his head at one of the men who had kidnapped her, and before she can turn her head, his closed fist is colliding with her cheek. Her skin stings and her ears ring. She gasps for air, head hanging to the side. She lifts her head back up, and the camera is right in her face.

"I've been searching for Klaus' weakness for some time, and imagine my surprise when it turns out to be you. A small town girl from Virginia, a poor bartender. It's quite interesting. He owes me a bit of money, and you're going to get it for me."

She's punched again, and she cries out this time.

"Do you love him?" The man asks. "Do you love Klaus?"

Caroline coughs, spits out blood. "I could." She answers. She flinches just as another punch comes. She can feel a steady drip of blood gliding down her temple.

He doesn't ask her anymore questions, just films as his cronies beat on her. After what feels like hours, he kneels in front of her, camera in hand. "Do you have anything to say?" He asks.

She can't see out of one eye, her ears are ringing, her lip is swollen, there are lacerations all across her face from their knuckles, but she still leans forward as much as she can, speaking to the camera. In a harsh whisper, she growls, "Klaus is going going to kill all of you."

The man frowns and pulls the camera away. "Put her to sleep." He snaps, and something hard, probably the same gun as before, strikes her head. She's out before she even has time to cry out.

The sound of heavy gunfire wakes her from her sleep. Groggily, she opens her eyes. The three men that had kidnapped her are dead on the floor at her feet. She whimpers in fear. "It's okay, Caroline." A familiar voice promises. The ropes around her wrists are suddenly ripped away.

Stefan pulls her up from the chair, steadying her. "Where's Klaus?" She murmurs, on the verge of passing out. Standing was not doing her body any good.

"He's here." Stefan promises. "He's making Marcel regret what he did to you." Stefan lifts her into his arms, and her head lolls against his shoulder. She keeps one eye open, in search of Klaus' familiar blonde head. They weave in and out of the large crates. There's a hole in the side of the warehouse, the Monte Carlo had been driven through the wall. She's too weak to comment on how awesome that is, but she makes a mental note to say something later.

Stefan lays her down in the backseat of the car, and she curls up in a ball on the familiar leather seats. She's on the verge of passing out again when the door opens. Klaus' cologne hits her nose first, and her eyes crack open. He's covered in blood, and his eyes are crazed as his hands glide over her body, taking in all of her bumps and bruises. He looks pained.

She wants to tell him she's okay, that she's not mad, that he saved her, but she can't seem to make the words come out. Instead, she cries, fat tears oozing down her cheeks. Klaus gathers her in his arms and she hears Stefan start the car.

She cries into Klaus' neck, and he rubs her back. "It's okay, love. I'm here. No one is going to hurt you ever again." It sounds like a promise. Her mind goes blank, and she cries herself to sleep against his neck.

She wakes up in her own bed after what feels like hours, maybe days. Klaus sits beside her bed, head in his hands. "Klaus?" She mumbles. His head snaps up.

"Thank god you're awake." He says, sitting on her bed. "You've been asleep for three days."

"It feels like I've been out for that long." She mutters. She feels like crap. She attempts to stretch, but her entire body hurts. "What happened?" She asks.

"I sold Marcel faulty guns a few months ago. They look real, they just don't fire. He's a big instigator in the New York gang wars. I didn't want anymore blood on my hands. He used the guns and lost a lot of men. He's wanted revenge ever since. I never thought he would come after you. I'm sorry, Caroline." He takes her hand in his, runs the pad of his thumb over her knuckles.

"How did you know where I was?" She asks.

"Marcel sent me the video he had taken of you." He grows angry then. He drops her hand and clenches his fists. Something in his eyes tells her not to ask, but she does anyway.

"Did you kill him?" She asks, a thrill shooting up her spine.

"Yes." He says. His eyes judge her reaction.

"I knew you would come for me." She smiles.

"I will always come for you, Caroline." He promises. She scoots over in her small bed as much as possible, and pats the space beside her. He doesn't need telling twice, and he strips off his jacket and kicks off his shoes. He crawls in beside her, working his arm under her head. "I'm sorry you got hurt." He murmurs into her hair.

"IIt's not your fault some psycho kidnapped me."

"But it is." Klaus says. "If it wasn't for me, and my feelings for you, you wouldn't have been in that mess at all." He sucks in a breath, and Caroline realizes that he must be deeply hurt, and he had been afraid. Afraid of losing her.

"I meant what I said in that video, you know." Caroline looks away from him. She can feel his eyes on her. He reaches out, touches a bruise on her cheek. She didn't think it was possible, but his touch soothes a little bit of her pain. "I _could_ love you."

"I will never be anything other than what I am, Caroline. If you want to be with me, than you have to be with all of me." Klaus shifts, reaches out and grabs her chin gently. He turns her face towards him. "Do you want to be with me?" He asks, softly. As though he's afraid of her answer.

Stubborn till the end, she shrugs.

Klaus laughs loudly, and she'd never noticed how much she liked the sound before..

"That's not a yes, Klaus." She glares at his grin.

"It's not a no either." He counters, gleeful. He presses a kiss to her forehead.

They lay like that for the rest of the day.

.

**Author's Note:** I posted this from my phone so there's probably lots of mistakes I'll get around to fixing someday. I'm just really happy about it and I couldn't wait for you guys to read it. I hope you enjoy!


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